Like opening day and warmer temperatures, another sure sign of spring is the Clinton Township Police Honor Guard’s annual fundraiser dinner to support their trip to Washington, D.C. for Police Memorial Week May 13-16.

“It really has become a community event,” police Lt. Ray Macksoud said of Tuesday’s dinner. “We get a lot of regulars who come out and when they’re leaving, they’ll say ‘See you next year.’ We’re very fortunate to have the community’s support.”

The spaghetti dinner fundraiser at the Mirage Banquet Center typically draws upwards of 600 people. Many are friends and relatives of the township’s law enforcers, but others are regular residents who wish to support their local police department.

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From time to time retired officers from other departments who have come to know the honor guard members over the years will also drop by to show their support.

Clinton Township’s honor guard -- with 24 years in, the longest-serving unit in Macomb County -- is routinely handed key assignments at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington including the annual wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery.

That’s because organizers have learned over the years that they can count on Clinton Township’s honor guard year after year at the event, where the names of law enforcers killed in the line of duty are added to a memorial.

The unit was first formed by Macksoud and now-retired Lt. Doug Mills in 1988. Since then, the unit has served at more than 100 police officer funerals and other noteworthy events.

In 2001, the trek to Washington took on a personal note after the department lost one of their own when Officer Richard Vauris, 54, was killed in a struggle with a despondent gunman.

The honor guard unit always lays a special wreath by Vauris’ name on the wall as a tribute to him.

Macksoud, the unit’s commander, said it’s an “incredibly moving experience” to see thousands of people gathered at the memorial and to hear the names read during a candlelight vigil followed by a blue laser light that shines into the sky to symbolize the “thin blue line” representing police protecting society.

“We also honor our fallen servicemen because they’re out there protecting the public too,” he said. “We are the last in the line of civil defense. We honor all of those doing this job and show them all respect.”

But the annual pilgrimage takes money.

Honor guard members are required to pay for their own transportation, lodging, fuel and equipment, so that’s why Tuesday’s fundraiser is important.

The event will be held from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Mirage, 16980 18 Mile Road (east of Garfield Road), Clinton Township. Tickets are $10, $7 for seniors, $5 for children ages 6-12, kids under 5 eat for free. Carry-outs are available. For more information, call 586-493-7803.